


Surprise Visit

by Lwoorl



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Dragons, Fluff, Gen, Grown up Damian Wayne, Magic, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-12-30 12:11:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18315026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lwoorl/pseuds/Lwoorl
Summary: Damian recently moved to his own place. Dick goes to pay him a visit.Fantasy AU, Damian is a dragon, Dick is half elf half fey. Go read the original series that inspired this thing, link in the notes.





	Surprise Visit

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [HeartFreeze](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14727800) by [DawnsEternalLight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DawnsEternalLight/pseuds/DawnsEternalLight), [Laquilasse (laquilasse)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/laquilasse/pseuds/Laquilasse). 



> (As always, my titles suck. If you got an actually cool name, I'm all ears.)
> 
> Hi!!!! I read this amazing fantasy AU made by DawnsEternalLight and Laquilasse (laquilasse) and just **needed** to write something into it!!! Go read their series Of Lightning and Scales!!!!! 
> 
> Again, disclaimer that this isn't my au, so this isn't canon for the original series, whatever "Canon" in the context of an inherently non canonical framework such as alternative universe fanfiction means. 
> 
> This was directly inspired by the fic HeartFreeze, more specifically this part: _“I’d like to think if Damian ever set up in one his would be plush and warm with lots of sun and hot rocks. Maybe even with some pillows.”_ I just couldn't get the idea out of my head, and I got permission to use the AU!! So I wrote it!!!! Yey!!!!  
> Anyway, enjoy!!!
> 
>  
> 
> Link to the original series: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1029008

Climbing the mountain ends being a little harder that Dick had originally expected, the path too narrow and steep for his horse, forcing him to leave it in a stable at the bottom and travel the path on foot. The constant presence of vegetation along the way helps on finding the best way up, whispering him to take this or that direction, but the short plants don't compare to a grown up forest, and hence can't fill him with energy and take away his fatigue by themselves. Not that he expected all the trees in the area to have matured already a little less than two years after the eruption. But still.

His original plan was for him to get there in the early morning, yet, by the time he reaches his destination the sun's already finished two quarters of its round on the sky. Which means he will have to pass the night if he doesn't intend to make the trip back home at night. Not that it bothers him, and he doesn't think he will be denied the stay either. 

The entrance to the cave is a long crack on the side of the volcano, partially hidden by bushes and bindweed. Dick takes a step inside, and is immediately picked up by the back of his shirt, taken up into the air and finding himself in front of a big slint shaped eye, which goes wide open as soon as it focuses on his form.

“Richard?!” Damian exclaims, sounding honestly bemused. “What are you doing here?!” 

“Surprise?” Dick says with a shrug. At that Damian frowns, and his surprise appears to dissipate a little, giving way to that typical fond exasperation. 

“You should have told me you were coming. I could have hurt you!” He huffs, sending a puff of warm white smoke in Dick's direction before placing him down, a bit more carefully than extrictly needed, the same way he always handles his friends and family ever since his dragon form became bigger than most humans. Like he thought they're going to shatter like eggs otherwise. It makes Dick feel something between wanting to roll his eyes and wanting to hug the kid. 

“You're right, sorry.” He answers while dusting a bit of dirt from his shirt where Damian grabbed him “I just wanted to surprise you.” 

“Well, you accomplished your objective.” Damian says while walking back into the cave. When Dick doesn't immediately follow he turns around and gestures with a claw for him to come. “What are you waiting for? Come inside.” 

The interior of the cave is lit by torches placed on the walls, giving the place a warm tint. There are carpets scattered around, covering the smooth stone floor, and at the center, a pile of metallic stuff, copper pots, bronze necklaces, and tiny spots of silver things here and then, all shimmering under the glow of the fire. 

Dick looks around, taking everything in. This seems to be the center of the cave, which then divides into other six paths. Half of them exude light, being lit from the inside similarly to the section he's in, while the others remain dark. He thinks he can hear the sound of water coming from one of the dark ones, so maybe a subterranean lake?

Damian's sitting next to his collection of things, making it, which is a good one or two meters taller than Dick, look small in comparison. He walks towards him and leaves his backpack on the floor, sitting next to his brother.

“You did a great work with the place.” He comments, grinning when Dami looks away in that way that tells him if he was looking human right now he would blush.

“It's not a big deal, there's still a lot of work to do before it can be even close to finished.” Damian replies, scratching his neck with a claw “I want to cover the floor with something better than carpets, they seemed like a good idea at first but in reality are hard to clean and stain easily, and the walls get damp when it rains so I need to find a way to fix that. Besides, all the things I brought from the palace are still thrown around without order, I have to find where to put them. Also, I need to get-” 

“You sound exactly like Barbara when she just moved to the tower. Soon you will be wondering what color to paint the walls and if the curtains go well with your crystals.” 

“Don't be ridiculous, I don't own curtains, nor crystals.” Damian mutters while resting his head on his arms. Dick scoots closer and rests his back against his brother's neck, as always, Damian is really warm. “Although I do wonder if there's a way to paint a cave's walls.” 

“Yup, just like Babs... You should ask her for help, she gets really into these kind of home design projects. I bet you two would have fun.” 

“I can do it by myself!” His brother jerks a bit, in a way that tells Dick he would move his head if Dick wasn't against it. Then, unable to give into his full on dramatic expression, opts for rolling his eyes. “Besides, what does any of you know about caves anyway?”

“Well, you  _ did _ a great job so far, even if you won't admit it. Where did you even find all this stuff?” Dick asks, gesturing towards the pile they're next to. He thinks he recognizes some of the things Damian brought from the palace among the little hoard, a golden pendant, a mirror embedded with rubies on the back, a comb with crystal decorations. But most of it has to be things he got recently. “Did you raid a small town or something?” 

“I would never-!”

“Relax, I'm kidding.” He assures him, while moving a hand to pet him. “You actually got a pretty good reputation with the people around here, I heard someone at the inn nearby saying you're a deity or a protector of sorts. How did you even manage that so quickly? It's not even been four months.” 

“Tt. You save some people from landslides a couple of times and suddenly everyone's leaving trash at your doorstep every other week.” 

“You can't be too bothered by it if you still kept it all.” He chuckles, pointing again at the hoard, making Damian averts his eyes, obviously embarrassed. “I would bet my two arms and legs you actually enjoy it.”

“...I guess as long as they don't start with human sacrifices, it isn't too bad.” 

“Mhm” Dick curls his legs against his chest and leans more against Damian's scales, the tiredness from the trip now coming back with full force now that he's able to give his legs a break, basking in his brother's warmth, giving him the same feeling as if he was lying on a grass field under summer's sun. 

When Damian starts to gently stroke his hair with the tip of one claw, he can't help it but to close his eyes. He's about to fall asleep when- 

Dick's stomach growls, loud enough to make an echo inside the cave. Damian's hand stops and he can feel the rumble in his throat as he laughs. “Are you hungry, Richard?” He asks, the smugness completely ruined by the fact he's still giggling. 

“Uh. I might have underestimated the trip and ran out of provision quicker than I had planned.” Dick admits, not quite able to avoid smiling. “Your place took forever to get to, you didn't tell us the entrance was climbing a cliff. Do something about it.” 

“I can't exactly build stairs and put a sign saying 'Dragon's cave at the top’ can I? Besides, if you had  _ told  _ me you were coming I could have met you at the bottom and then flight to the top.” Damian moves the claw that was going through Dick's hair, now using it to nudge him to move away. Once Dick gives him some space his brother stands up and takes a step towards the exit. “I will go hunt something to eat. Wait here.”

“I'm not  _ that _ hungry.”

“Shut up, you are. And I was about to go for something to eat anyway.” Damian opens his wings and is about to take off, when he turns around at the last second and looks at him. “You can wander wherever you want while I'm gone, but maybe don't go into the dark parts of the cave?” 

“Awwww, but Dami, if you tell me not to snoop it just makes it harder to avoid.” 

“Don’t be a dumbass.” He rolls his eyes, complementing the movement with his head. “It’s just that I haven't really touched those sections, and it's easy to get lost. Go ahead if you want to but don't expect me to come rescue you.” 

“Ok, ok, I get it. I won't wanders off into the dark.” 

“Also, there's a river I still don't know what to do with, so-”

“I'm not going to die while you aren't looking. You know that, right?”

“Fine. I will try to not take more than an hour.” Following that he opens his wings and disappears, leaving Dick to explore by himself.

Because he isn't  _ actually _ stupid, he decides not to wander into the dark cave system and get lost.

Instead, he moves to look what is at the end of the other bright paths. One of them takes him to what he supposes is the skeleton of an unfinished armory, swords and bows left around the room, plus some makeshift targets for practicing archery. Another one seems to work as a storage room of sorts, with some shelves for potions and other medical supplies, plus clothes, pelts, and different kinds of furniture left around. Interestingly enough, Damian seems to keep money separately from his hoard, probably for easier access. 

He's about to go investigate the next part of the cave when Damian comes back, carrying an adult deer in his mouth. 

The path further to the right turns out to go to what he can only call a kind of dragon kitchen, provided with utensils brought from the castle and a pantry of condiments, but lacking any kind of stove. There's instead a pile of coal at the center, with a natural hole in the ceiling right over it, most likely being used for letting out the dark smoke.

It takes Damian no more than fifteen minutes to prepare the meat, with a little bit of Dick's help, cutting it and then roasting it over the coal with his fire, and soon Dick finds himself eating a piece while Dami eats the rest in (for him) little bites. 

“Oh, I almost forget.” Dick says, halfway into the meal. “I brought you something, wait here.” 

He moves to retrieve his backpack and extracts from it a carefully wrapped package which then shows his brother. 

“Here, I thought you might like this.” He says as he unwraps it, revealing a glass bottle filled with honey and a couple of Alfred's cookies, the sign of which makes Dami wave his tail like a huge puppy.

He shifts to his human form to start eating them, which surprises Dick a little, having only seen him as a dragon all day. It makes him feel a bit like a moron, of course Dami likes changing between human and dragon freely, didn't he move from the castle precisely because he had to stay stuck as a human in Gotham? 

Damian eats the cookies, not even saving some for later, and finishes with a quarter of the honey. Dick also ends trying some, less than a spoonful, and if anyone asks Damian forced him to. 

“The castle feels a bit emptier without you.” He mutters, leaning his head on Dami's shoulder. 

“I'm moving, not dying. And there hasn't been a day without one of you calling through the speaking stone.” 

“Still. Our baby brother suddenly grew up and left, what did you expect?” 

“I'm taller than you even as a human.” He says, faking irritation. 

“Doesn’t matter, once a baby, always the baby-” He cuts himself when a yawn scapes his mouth. 

“Mhm. It's kind of late, isn't it?” Damian mutters, pushing Dick away. “Do you want to go to sleep now?.... You're staying the night, aren't you?” 

“If it isn't a problem.”

“Of course it isn't.” Damian answers, a hopeful note in his voice. “How long are you staying?”

“I thought of making a short visit, but I don't have any hard time planned. We would have to go for my horse, but if you want to…”

“Yeah! You should definitely stay a couple of days.” He excitedly says, grinning from ear to ear. “There's a spot in the forest I want to show you and we could go hunt together too. Also, one of the towns nearby has a wonderful jewelry store you should see. Can you believe they recognize me as a dragonborn and still haven't done the connection with the dragon in the mountain? I'm actually waiting to see how long it takes for them to realize…” Dick lets the conversation wash over him, content with hearing about all the stuff his brother liked about his new place, until he ends yawning again and Damian trailed off. “Let's go to sleep, I'm tired too.” 

Damian moves into the last unexplored part of the cave and Dick follows. “Wow.” He gapes as he enters and sees a  _ mountain _ of pillows, of all kinds and sizes, almost reaching to the ceiling. 

“It might be a bit excessive.” Dami admits, his face red. “But it's comfy. There should be space for both of us, I think.”

“I think you have space for several households.” 

“I guess.” He mumbles, before climbing into his giant bed and falling on his back. “I think I'm sleeping in this body today. That's fine, right? Like when I was a kid.” 

“It's up to you.” He answers, moving to lie next to him, secretly glad. As nice it is resting with Damian as a dragon, warm and safe as it is, he stills prefers to be able to properly hug his baby brother.

“I don't really own any pijama here.” Dami says, looking at the stalactites upwards. “But I suppose you didn't bring any either?” 

“Nah, we will have to sleep in plain clothes.” 

“Hm. Remind me to buy something to sleep in.”

“You have night clothes back home, just take them when you come to take the rest of your things.”

“Or you could send my things here.”

“No, because it gives us an excuse to have you visit.”

“It's not been that long.”

“It feels like five years.”

Damian chuckles, and then moves closer. “Good night, Richard.” He says as he places his head on his chest. Dick takes the opportunity to rest his chin on Damian's head, placing his arms around his shoulders. As always, Damian is very warm, even as a human.

“Night, big baby brother.” 

**Author's Note:**

> As always please remember to comment!!! It feeds my soul and heart!!!! 🙆💕🙆💕🙆💕


End file.
